Oxnard Bemoans Boxer’s Loss, Plans Welcoming Parade

His Olympic defeat was narrow and unexpected, but Oxnard’s local boxer will still have a hero’s welcome when he returns home.

At La Colonia Youth Boxing Club gym where Fernando Vargas honed his skills, fellow boxers, friends and coaches bemoaned his loss in the second-round bout.

“He got robbed,” said 12-year-old boxer Adrian Castellon, referring to the controversy surrounding the final score. “He was leading in the half rounds. Being at the Olympics, man, I think it’s a long way to go to the Olympics. He tried. You win some, you lose some.”

Vargas was shut out of the boxing finals Thursday after narrowly losing to Romanian Marian Simion, 8-7.

“I was expecting him to get to the finals and I was looking forward to him fighting some of the Cubans, because he is a tough kid,” said Oxnard Councilman Bedford Pinkard, one of the founders of the boxing club, referring to the Cuban fighters who brought home seven gold medals at the Barcelona Games four years ago.

Two Oxnard fighters made it to the Olympics--Vargas and Carlos Martinez, who represented Mexico--and both have ended their quest for a medal. Martinez lost in the first round Wednesday.

But to honor their participation in the Games, city officials are planning a parade for Vargas and Martinez when they return from Atlanta.

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Vargas, 18, who began boxing at age 11, is still considered a role model among the young fighters in the La Colonia Youth Boxing Club. On Thursday night, coaches and boxers planned to gather at a local restaurant to review the fight and talk about boxing strategy.

Some were not surprised he did not make it to the final rounds, because of his lack of international experience.

“He got as far as he could and he made the team,” said La Colonia trainer Ruben Juarez. “It was tough to say that he was going to get a gold. He didn’t have much international experience.”

Juarez said the young boxer would probably turn professional when he returns home.

A self-described roughneck, Vargas began boxing seven years ago to channel his reckless energy and street-brawling tendencies into a positive direction. He exploded onto the national boxing scene as the youngest-ever U.S. champion at age 16.

Vargas makes much of his hometown pride, promising in interviews that he will never leave Oxnard. He bristles at comparisons with another prominent Southern California fighter, Oscar de la Hoya, who moved from his hometown of East Los Angeles to Whittier.

“Since the beginning, I’ve always wanted to put Oxnard on the map and represent Oxnard,” Vargas said in a recent interview with The Times. “I’m always going to stay here, I’m always going to live in Oxnard. . . . This is where I grew up and this is where people have supported me.”

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That support was undimmed Thursday, though it was tinged with sadness that Vargas is out of the running.

“He lost?” asked Lourdes Escalante, who lives near the boxing club.

“Oh, and we were going to welcome him home with mariachis!” Escalante joked, then added that she was very proud of Vargas.

In La Colonia, the younger boxers eagerly awaited the Olympian’s return.

“Maybe he just didn’t throw enough punches,” said boxer Daniel Cervantes, 11, who considers Vargas his mentor. “When he comes back, I am going to tell him that he tried really hard.”

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